RSS centenary lecture series: Over 50 embassies, including US, UK, Saudi Arabia & UAE invited (IANS Exclusive)

New Delhi, Aug 24 (IANS) In an unprecedented outreach, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has extended invitations to more than 50 foreign embassies -- including the US, the UK, Germany, Japan, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, and several other nations from the Muslim world, including Saudi, the UAE and others -- to participate in its centenary-year lecture series that will take place in New Delhi between August 26 to 28.

According to senior RSS functionaries speaking to IANS on the condition of anonymity, the move signals the Sangh's intent to showcase its intellectual and cultural side to a global audience.

Diplomats, opposition leaders, industry leaders, startup founders, defence experts, and members of minority communities such as Muslims, Christians, and Buddhists are among those expected to attend.

Nearly 2,000 participants are anticipated for the flagship event in New Delhi.

From the political side, a senior RSS functionary said that many of those who have little or no knowledge about RSS have also been invited.

Political representation will cut across party lines.

Leaders such as BJP leaders and Union Ministers Ravneet Singh Bittu and Jyotiraditya Scindia, Apna Dal (Soney Lal) and Union Minister Anupriya Patel, JD-U's K.C. Tyagi and Sanjay Jha, and Union Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu from the TDP are among those on the guest list, highlighting an effort to widen engagement beyond the BJP and Sangh's traditional networks.

"We have invited leaders from every political party including Congress," a senior Sangh functionary said.

The lecture series, titled "100 Years of Sangh Yatra – New Horizons", will begin with a three-day session at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi from August 26 to 28, featuring RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat’s address.

Subsequent events are planned in Bengaluru (November), and in Kolkata (December) and Mumbai early next year in February.

"Covering 17 thematic categories and 138 sub-categories, the invitation list will focus on achievers and their social, professional, and cultural contributions to the nation," said Sunil Ambekar, Akhil Bharatiya Prachar Pramukh of the RSS a few days back while addressing a press conference.

The themes will include youth and entrepreneurship, women's leadership, national security, cultural identity, institutional decolonisation, and social harmony.

The presence of foreign diplomats underscores international curiosity about India's ideological and cultural currents.

By also including youth influencers, technology innovators, and changemakers, the RSS hopes to project its engagement with "Young India".

The centenary initiative is being viewed as a defining moment for the organisation, aiming to reframe global perceptions of the Sangh from that of a hardline rightwing cultural body to one with intellectual and societal depth.

--IANS

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